I went to Australia to improve my English and learn international business for one year after I had worked for six years in Japan. When I worked as an administrator in an international business department in a trading company, I often needed to write emails to our suppliers in English and wanted to write easy to understand emails in appropriate English.
It was hard to decide which country I should go to, but I decided to go to Australia since I had been to Australia to study English for one month when I was a university student and came to like the friendly and big-hearted people, beautiful nature and relaxed atmosphere. As the purpose of my stay in Australia was to learn practical business English, I talked with the staff of an agency which supported the preparation for my stay in Australia and decided to first attend a language school, then go to a college to learn international business.
I studied at a language school in Sydney for three months to obtain enough English skills for the enrollment in an international business course in a college. Since Australia is located near Asia and in the southern hemisphere, there were as many Chinese and Korean students as Japanese along with a small group of South American students from Brazil and Colombia, in our school.

My classmate from Brazil told us that he was held at a gun point when robbers broke into his house in Brasilia. Another classmate from Turkey told a story about how he had asked for a discount at a supermarket in Australia, which made our teacher surprised, when we were learning about discounts in a class. It was an exciting experience for me to know about the cultures of other countries.
I did a homestay in Vaucluse which is northeast from the center of Sydney. My host mother from England lived in a house by herself and we talked a lot while having a cup of tea after dinner. We sometimes had discussions about social problems such as whether having a wedding ceremony can lower the divorce rate of married couples.
I usually went to school by bus. I could use the same card for the bus and ferry and sometimes took a ferry to come back home. The view from the ferry was so beautiful. I could see many wonderful beaches which had their own features and were safe for swimming, even if the waves were rough since there were lifeguards on most of the beaches. It was a nice memory for me to have picnics on the beach with my host mother and friends on Christmas day.

When I was in Australia, I strongly felt that I didn’t know about Japan very well. Students from other countries asked about Japan and expected knowledgeable answers from me. They were interested in the current situations in the world and had their own opinions about them. I still remember how I felt ashamed that I couldn’t answer when I was asked about whale hunting.
I also thought about the Japanese education system at that time. In our system students tend to be passive and are forced to cram knowledge during classes. Japanese students are often bewildered in classes in foreign countries since they don’t have many opportunities to think about problems in the world and actively express their opinions in classes. It is said that Japanese people aren’t good at speaking English, but I think this is not only because of language but also due to the attitude to actively speak to someone and having a lack of interest in the world.
During trips overseas, we may notice differences in other cultures and realize how safe and convenient Japan is, but there are many things you can’t notice if you don’t live with foreigners like doing a homestay or sharing a house. Compared to before, we can easily go abroad, but I heard that the number of young people who want to stay in foreign countries is decreasing. I actually stayed in Australia and feel that living abroad is a valuable and memorable experience with many surprises and much excitement even if it is for a short period of time.